Techniques for automatically detecting protocols in a computer network

RELATED APPLICATIONS

0001This U.S. patent application is a continuation patent application of prior application Ser. No. 11/068,293 filed on 28 Feb. 2005 which is a continuation patent application of prior application Ser. No. 09/525,400 filed on 15 Mar. 2000 now abandoned, which is a continuation of prior application Ser. No. 08/822,156, filed on 14 Mar. 1997, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,128,653 (issued on 03 Oct. 2000). U.S. application Ser. Nos. 11/068,293, 09/525,400 and 08/822,156 are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety herein.

0002This application is related to co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/818,805, entitled “Method and Apparatus for Implementing Motion Detection in Video Compression,” U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/819,507, entitled “Digital Video Signal Encoder and Encoding Method,” U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/818,804, entitled “Production of a Video Stream with Synchronized Annotations over a Computer Network,” U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/819,586, entitled “Methods and Apparatus for Implementing Control Functions in a Streamed Video Display System,” U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/818,769, entitled “Methods and Apparatus for Automatically Detecting Protocols in a Computer Network,” U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/818,127, entitled “Dynamic Bandwidth. Selection for Efficient Transmission of Multimedia Streams in a Computer Network,” U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/819,585, entitled “Streaming and Displaying of a Video Stream with Synchronized Annotations over a Computer Network,” U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/818,664, entitled “Selective Retransmission for Efficient and Reliable Streaming of Multimedia Packets in a Computer Network,” U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/819,579, entitled “Method and Apparatus for Table-Based Compression with Embedded_Coding,” U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/819,587, entitled “Method and Apparatus for Implementing Motion Estimation in Video Compression,” U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/818,826, entitled “Conditional Replenishment Mechanism for Digital Video Signal Encoding, all filed concurrently herewith, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/623,299, filed Mar. 28, 1996, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/625,650, filed Mar. 29, 1996, and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/714,447, filed Sep. 16, 1996, which are all incorporated herein by reference in their entirety for all purposes.

BACKGROUND

0003The present invention relates to data communication in a computer network. More particularly, the present invention relates to improved methods and apparatus for permitting a client computer in a client-server architecture computer network to exchange media commands and media data with the server using the HTTP (hypertext transfer protocol) protocol.

0004Client-server architectures are well known to those skilled in the computer art. For example, in a typical computer network, one or more client computers may be coupled to any number of server computers. Client computers typically refer to terminals or personal computers through which end users interact with the network. Server computers typically represent nodes in the computer network where data, application programs, and the like, reside. Server computers may also represent nodes in the network for forwarding data, programs, and the likes from other servers to the requesting client computers.

0005To facilitate discussion, <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 1</figref> illustrates a computer network <b>100</b>, representing for example a subset of an international computer network popularly known as the Internet. As is well known, the Internet represents a well-known international computer network that links, among others, various military, governmental, educational, nonprofit, industrial and financial institutions, commercial enterprises, and individuals. There are shown in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 1</figref> a server <b>102</b>, a server <b>104</b>, and a client computer <b>106</b>. Server computer <b>104</b> is separated from client computer <b>106</b> by a firewall <b>108</b>, which may be implemented in either software or hardware, and may reside on a computer and/or circuit between client computer <b>106</b> and server computer <b>104</b>.

0006Firewall <b>108</b> may be specified, as is well known to those skilled in the art, to prevent certain types of data and/or protocols from traversing through it. The specific data and/or protocols prohibited or permitted to traverse firewall <b>108</b> depend on the firewall parameters, which are typically set by a system administrator responsible for the maintenance and security of client computer <b>106</b> and/or other computers connected to it, e.g., other computers in a local area network. By way of example, firewall <b>108</b> may be set up to prevent TCP, UDP, or HTTP (Transmission Control Protocol, User Datagram Protocol, and Hypertext Transfer Protocol, respectively) data and/or other protocols from being transmitted between client computer <b>106</b> and server <b>104</b>. The firewalls could be configured to allow specific TCP or UDP sessions, for example outgoing TCP connection to certain ports, UDP sessions to certain ports, and the like.

0007Without a firewall, any type of data and/or protocol may be communicated between a client computer and a server computer if appropriate software and/or hardware are employed. For example, server <b>102</b> resides on the same side of firewall <b>108</b> as client computer <b>106</b>, i.e., firewall <b>108</b> is not disposed in between the communication path between server <b>102</b> and client computer <b>106</b>. Accordingly, few, if any, of the protocols that client computer <b>106</b> may employ to communicate with server <b>102</b> may be blocked.

0008As is well known to those skilled in the art, some computer networks may be provided with proxies, i.e., software codes or hardware circuitries that facilitate the indirect communication between a client computer and a server around a firewall. With reference to <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 1</figref>, for example, client computer <b>106</b> may communicate with server <b>104</b> through proxy <b>120</b>. Through proxy <b>120</b>, HTTP data, which may otherwise be blocked by firewall <b>108</b> for the purpose of this example, may be transmitted between client computer <b>106</b> and server computer <b>104</b>.

0009In some computer networks, one or more protocols may be available for communication between the client computer and the server computer. For certain applications, one of these protocols, however, is often more advantageous, i.e., suitable, than others. By way of example, in applications involving real-time data rendering (such as rendering audio, video, and/or annotation data as they are streamed from a server, as described in above-referenced U.S. patent application Ser. Nos. 08/818,804 and 08/819,585), it is highly preferable that the client computer executing that application selects a protocol that permits the greatest degree of control over the transmission of data packets and/or enables data transmission to occur at the highest possible rate. This is because theses applications are fairly demanding in terms of their bit rate and connection reliability requirements. Accordingly, the quality of the data rendered, e.g., the video and/or audio clips played, often depends on whether the user has successfully configured the client computer to receive data from the server computer using the most advantageous protocol available.

0010In the prior art, the selection of the most advantageous protocol for communication between client computer <b>106</b> and server computer <b>104</b> typically requires a high degree of technical sophistication on the part of the user of client computer <b>106</b>. By way of example, it is typically necessary in the prior art for the user of the client computer <b>106</b> to understand the topology of computer network <b>100</b>, the protocols available for use with the network, and/or the protocols that can traverse firewall <b>108</b> before that user can be expected to configure his client computer <b>106</b> for communication.

0011This level of technical sophistication is, however, likely to be beyond that typically possessed by an average user of client computer <b>106</b>. Accordingly, users in the prior art often find it difficult to configure their client computers even for simple communication tasks with the network. The difficulties may be encountered for example during the initial setup or whenever there are changes in the topology of computer network <b>100</b> and/or in the topology employed to transmit data between client computer <b>106</b> and server <b>104</b>. Typically, expert and expensive assistance is required, if such assistance is available at all in the geographic area of the user.

0012Furthermore, even if the user can configure client computer <b>106</b> to communicate with server <b>104</b> through firewall <b>108</b> and/or proxy <b>120</b>, there is no assurance that the user of client computer <b>106</b> has properly selected, among the protocol available, the most advantageous protocol communication (e.g., in terms of data transmission rate, transmission control, and the like). As mentioned earlier, the ability to employ the most advantageous protocol for communication, while desirable for most networking applications, and is particularly critical in applications such as real-time data rendering (e.g., rendering of audio, video, and/or annotation data as they are receive from the server). If a less than optimal protocol is chosen for communication, the quality of the rendered data, e.g., the video clips and/or audio clips, may suffer.

0013In view of the foregoing, there are desired improved techniques for permitting a client computer in a client-server network to efficiently, automatically, and appropriately select the most advantageous protocol to communicate with a server computer.

SUMMARY

0014The invention relates, in one embodiment, to a method in a computer network for automatically detecting a most advantageous protocol for communication by a client computer. The client computer is configured to be coupled to a server computer via a computer network. The method includes sending from the client computer to the server computer, a plurality of data requests. Each of the data requests employs a different protocol and a different connection. The data requests are configured to solicit, responsive to the data request, a set of responses from the server computer. Each of the responses employs a protocol associated with a respective one of the data requests.

0015The method further includes receiving at the client computer at least a subset of the responses. The method also includes monitoring the subset of the responses as each response is received from the server computer to select the most advantageous protocol from protocols associated with the subset of responses, wherein the most advantageous protocol is determined based on a predefined protocol priority.

0016In another embodiment, the invention relates to a method in a computer network for automatically detecting a most advantageous protocol for communication by a client computer. The client computer is configured to be coupled to a server computer via a computer network. The method includes sending from the client computer to the server computer, a plurality of data requests. Each of the data requests employs a different protocol and a different connection.

0017The method further includes receiving at least a subset of the data request at the server computer. The method additionally includes sending a set of responses from the server computer to the client computer. The set of responses is responsive to the subset of the data request. Each of the responses employs a protocol associated with a respective one of the subset of the data requests. The method also includes receiving at the client computer at least a subset of the responses. There is further included selecting, for the communication between the client computer and the server computer, the most advantageous protocol from the protocols associated with the subset of the responses, wherein the most advantageous protocol is determined based on a predefined protocol priority.

0018In yet another embodiment, the invention relates to a computer readable medium containing computer-readable instructions for automatically detecting a most advantageous protocol for communication by a client computer. The client computer is configured to be coupled to a server computer via a computer network. The computer-readable instructions comprise computer instructions for sending in a substantially parallel manner, from the client computer to the server computer, a plurality of data requests. Each of the data request employs a different protocol and a different connection. The data requests are configured to solicit, responsive to the data request, a set of responses from the server computer. Each of the responses employs a protocol associated with a respective one of the data requests.

0019The computer readable medium further includes computer readable instructions for receiving at the client computer at least a subset of the responses. There is further included computer readable instructions for monitoring the subset of the responses as each response is received from the server computer to select the most advantageous protocol from protocols associated with the subset of responses, wherein the most advantageous protocol is determined based on a predefined protocol priority.

0020These and other features of the present invention will be described in more detail below in the detailed description of the invention and in conjunction with the following figures.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

0021To facilitate discussion, <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 1</figref> illustrates a computer network, representing for example a portion of an international computer network popularly known as the Internet.

0022<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 2</figref> is a block diagram of an exemplar computer system for carrying out the autodetect technique according to one embodiment of the invention.

0023<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 3</figref> illustrates, in accordance with one embodiment, the control and data connections between a client application and a server computer when no firewall is provided in the network.

0024<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 4</figref> illustrates another network arrangement wherein control and data connections are established through a firewall.

0025<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIGS. 5A-B</figref> illustrates another network arrangement wherein media control commands and media data may be communicated between a client computer and a server computer using the HTTP protocol.

0026<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIGS. 5C-D</figref> illustrate another network arrangement wherein multiple HTTP control and data connections are multiplexed through a single I-ITTP port.

0027<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 6</figref> illustrates another network arrangement wherein control and data connections are transmitted between the client application and the server computer via a proxy.

0028<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 7</figref> depicts, in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, a simplified flowchart illustrating the steps of the inventive autodetect technique.

0029<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 8A</figref> depicts, in accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the steps involved in executing the UDP protocol thread of <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 7</figref>.

0030<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 8B</figref> depicts, in accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the steps involved in executing the TCP protocol thread of <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 7</figref>.

0031<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 8C</figref> depicts, in accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the steps involved in executing the HTTP protocol thread of <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 7</figref>.

0032<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 8D</figref> depicts, in accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the steps involved in executing the HTTP <b>80</b> protocol thread of <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 7</figref>.

0033<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 8E</figref> depicts, in accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the steps involved in executing the HTTP <b>8080</b> protocol thread of <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 7</figref>.

0034<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 9</figref> illustrates, in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, the steps involved in executing the control thread of <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 7</figref>.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

0035The present invention will now be described in detail with reference to a few preferred embodiments thereof as illustrated in the accompanying drawings. In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art, that the present invention may be practiced without some or all of these specific details. In other instances, well known process steps have not been described in detail in order to not unnecessarily obscure the present invention.

0036In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the client computer in a heterogeneous client-server computer network (e.g., client computer <b>106</b> in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 1</figref>) is provided with an autodetect mechanism. When executed, the autodetect mechanism advantageously permits client computer <b>106</b> to select, in an efficient and automatic manner, the most advantageous protocol for communication between the client computer and its server. Once the most advantageous protocol is selected, parameters pertaining to the selected protocol are saved to enable the client computer, in future sessions, to employ the same selected protocol for communication.

0037In accordance with one particular advantageous embodiment, the inventive autodetect mechanism simultaneously employs multiple threads, through multiple connections, to initiate communication with the server computer, e.g., server <b>104</b>. Each thread preferably employs a different protocol and requests the server computer to respond to the client computer using the protocol associated with that thread. For example, client computer <b>106</b> may, employing the autodetect mechanism, initiate five different threads, using respectively the TCP, UDP, one of HTTP and HTTP proxy, HTTP through port (multiplex) <b>80</b>, and HTTP through port (multiplex) <b>8080</b> protocols to request server <b>104</b> to respond.

0038Upon receiving a request, server <b>104</b> responds with data using the same protocol as that associated with the thread on which the request arrives. If one or more protocols is blocked and fails to reach server <b>104</b> (e.g., by a firewall), no response employing the blocked protocol would of course be transmitted from server <b>104</b> to client computer <b>106</b>. Further, some of the protocols transmitted from server <b>104</b> to client computer <b>106</b> may be blocked as well. Accordingly, client computer may receive only a subset of the responses sent from server <b>104</b>.

0039In one embodiment, client computer <b>106</b> monitors the set of received responses. If the predefined “best” protocol is received, that protocol is then selected for communication by client computer <b>106</b>. The predefined “best” protocol may be defined in advance by the user and/or the application program. If the predefined “best” protocol is, however, blocked (as the request is transmitted from the client computer or as the response is transmitted from the server, for example) the most advantageous protocol may simply be selected from the set of protocols received back by the client computer. In one embodiment, the selection may be made among the set of protocols received back by the client computer within a predefined time period after the requests are sent out in parallel.

0040The selection of the most advantageous protocol for communication among the protocols received by client computer <b>106</b> may be performed in accordance with some predefined priority. For example, in the real-time data rendering application, the UDP protocol may be preferred over TCP protocol, which may be in turned preferred over the HTTP protocol. This is because UDP protocol typically can handle a greater data transmission rate and may allow client computer <b>106</b> to exercise a greater degree of control over the transmission of data packets.

0041HTTP data, while popular nowadays for use in transmitting web pages, typically involves a higher number of overhead bits, making it less efficient relative to the UDP protocol for transmitting real-time data. As is known, the HTTP protocol is typically built on top of TCP. The underlaying TCP protocol typically handles the transmission and retransmission requests of individual data packets automatically. Accordingly, the HTTP protocol tends to reduce the degree of control client computer <b>106</b> has over the transmission of the data packets between server <b>104</b> and client computer <b>106</b>. Of course other priority schemes may exist for different applications, or even for different real-time data rendering applications.

0042In one embodiment, as client computer <b>106</b> is installed and initiated for communication with server <b>104</b> for the fist time, the autodetect mechanism is invoked to allow client computer <b>106</b> to send transmission requests in parallel (e.g., using different protocols over different connections) in the manner discussed earlier. After server <b>104</b> responds with data via multiple connections/protocols and the most advantageous protocol has been selected by client computer <b>106</b> for communication (in accordance with some predefined priority), the parameters associated with the selected protocol are then saved for future communication.

0043Once the most advantageous protocol is selected, the autodetect mechanism may be disabled, and future communication between client computer <b>106</b> and server <b>104</b> may proceed using the selected most advantageous protocol without further invocation of the autodetect mechanism. If the topology of computer network <b>100</b> changes and communication using the previously selected “most advantageous” protocol is no longer appropriate, the autodetect mechanism may be executed again to allow client computer <b>106</b> to ascertain a new “most advantageous” protocol for communication with server <b>104</b>. In one embodiment, the user of client computer <b>106</b> may, if desired, initiate the autodetect mechanism at anytime in order to enable client computer <b>106</b> to update the “most advantageous” protocol for communication with server <b>104</b> (e.g., when the user of client computer <b>106</b> has reasons to suspect that the previously selected “most io advantageous” protocol is no longer the most optimal protocol for communication).

0044The inventive autodetect mechanism may be implemented either in software or hardware, e.g., via an IC chip. If implemented in software, it may be carried out by any number of computers capable of functioning as a client computer in a computer network. <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 2</figref> is a block diagram of an exemplar computer system <b>200</b> for carrying out the autodetect technique according to one embodiment of the invention. Computer system <b>200</b>, or an analogous one, may be employed to implement either a client or a server of a computer network. The computer system <b>200</b> includes a digital computer <b>202</b>, a display screen (or monitor) <b>204</b>, a printer <b>206</b>, a floppy disk drive <b>208</b>, a hard disk drive <b>210</b>, a network interface <b>212</b>, and a keyboard <b>214</b>. The digital computer <b>202</b> includes a microprocessor <b>216</b>, a memory bus <b>218</b>, random access memory (RAM) <b>220</b>, read only memory (ROM) <b>222</b>, a peripheral bus <b>224</b>, and a keyboard controller <b>226</b>. The digital computer <b>200</b> can be a personal computer (such as an Apple computer, e.g., an Apple Macintosh, an IBM personal computer, or one of the compatibles thereof), a workstation computer (such as a Sun Microsystems or Hewlett-Packard workstation), or some other type of computer.

0045The microprocessor <b>216</b> is a general purpose digital processor which controls the operation of the computer system <b>200</b>. The microprocessor <b>216</b> can be a single-chip processor or can be implemented with multiple components. Using instructions retrieved from memory, the microprocessor <b>216</b> controls the reception and manipulation of input data and the output and display of data on output devices.

0046The memory bus <b>218</b> is used by the microprocessor <b>216</b> to access the RAM <b>220</b> and the ROM <b>222</b>. The RAM <b>220</b> is used by the microprocessor <b>216</b> as a general storage area and as scratch-pad memory, and can also be used to store input data and processed data. The ROM <b>222</b> can be used to store instructions or program code followed by the microprocessor <b>216</b> as well as other data.

0047The peripheral bus <b>224</b> is used to access the input, output, and storage devices used by the digital computer <b>202</b>. In the described embodiment, these devices include the display screen <b>204</b>, the printer device <b>206</b>, the floppy disk drive <b>208</b>, the hard disk drive <b>210</b>, and the network interface <b>212</b>, which is employed to connect computer <b>200</b> to the network. The keyboard controller <b>226</b> is used to receive input from keyboard <b>214</b> and send decoded symbols for each pressed key to microprocessor <b>216</b> over bus <b>228</b>.

0048The display screen <b>204</b> is an output device that displays images of data provided by the microprocessor <b>216</b> via the peripheral bus <b>224</b> or provided by other components in the computer system <b>200</b>. The printer device <b>206</b> when operating as a printer provides an image on a sheet of paper or a similar surface. Other output devices such as a plotter, typesetter, etc. can be used in place of, or in addition to, the printer device <b>206</b>.

0049The floppy disk drive <b>208</b> and the hard disk drive <b>210</b> can be used to store 15 various types of data. The floppy disk drive <b>208</b> facilitates transporting such data to other computer systems, and hard disk drive <b>210</b> permits fast access to large amounts of stored data.

0050The microprocessor <b>216</b> together with an operating system operate to execute computer code and produce and use data. The computer code and data may reside on the RAM <b>220</b>, the ROM <b>222</b>, the hard disk drive <b>220</b>, or even on another computer on the network. The computer code and data could also reside on a removable program medium and loaded or installed onto the computer system <b>200</b> when needed. Removable program mediums include, for example, CD-ROM, PC-CARD, floppy disk and magnetic tape.

0051The network interface circuit <b>212</b> is used to send and receive data over a network connected to other computer systems. An interface card or similar device and appropriate software implemented by the microprocessor <b>216</b> can be used to connect the computer system <b>200</b> to an existing network and transfer data according to standard protocols.

0052The keyboard <b>214</b> is used by a user to input commands and other instructions to the computer system <b>200</b>. Other types of user input devices can also be used in conjunction with the present invention. For example, porting devices such as a computer mouse, a track ball, a stylus, or a tablet can be used to manipulate a pointer on a screen of a general-purpose computer.

0053The invention can also be embodied as computer readable code on a computer readable medium. The computer readable medium is any data storage device that can store data which can be thereafter be read by a computer system. Examples of the computer readable medium include read-only memory, random-access memory, CD-ROMs, magnetic tape, optical data storage devices. The computer readable code can also be distributed over a network coupled computer systems so that the computer readable code is stored and executed in a distributed fashion.

0054<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIGS. 3-6</figref> below illustrate, to facilitate discussion, some possible arrangements for the transmission and receipt of data in a computer network. The arrangements differ depend on which protocol is employed and the configuration of the network itself. <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 3</figref> illustrates, in accordance with one embodiment, the control and data connections between a client application <b>300</b> and server <b>302</b> when no firewall is provided in the network.

0055Client application <b>300</b> may represent, for example, the executable codes for executing a real-time data rendering program such as the Web Theater Client 2.0, available from VXtreme, Inc. of Sunnyvale, Calif. In the example of <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 3</figref>, client application <b>300</b> includes the inventive autodetect mechanism and may represent a plug-in software module that may be installed onto a browser <b>306</b>. Browser <b>306</b> may represent, for example, the application program which the user of the client computer employs to navigate the network. By way of example, browser <b>306</b> may represent one of the popular Internet browser programs, such as Netscape™ by Netscape Communications Inc. of Mountain View, Calif. or Microsoft Explorer by Microsoft Corporation of Redmond, Wash.

0056When the autodetect mechanism of client application <b>300</b> is executed in browser <b>306</b> (e.g., during the set up of client application <b>300</b>), client application <b>300</b> sends a control request over control connection <b>308</b> to server <b>302</b>. Although multiple control requests are typically sent in parallel over multiple control connections using different protocols as discussed earlier, only one control request is depicted in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 3</figref> to facilitate ease of illustration.

0057The protocol employed to send the control request over control connection <b>308</b> may represent, for example, TCP, or HTTP. If UDP protocol is requested from the server, the request from the client may be sent via the control connection using for example the TCP protocol. Initially, each control request from client application <b>300</b> may include, for example, the server name that identifies server <b>302</b>, the port through which control connection may be established, and the name of the video stream requested by client application <b>300</b>. Server <b>302</b> then responds with data via data connection <b>310</b>.

0058In <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 3</figref>, it is assumed that no proxies and/or firewalls exist. Accordingly, server <b>302</b> responds using the same protocol as that employed in the request. If the request employs TCP, however, server <b>302</b> may attempt to respond. using either UDP or TCP data connections (depending on the specifics of the request). The response is sent to client application via data connection <b>310</b>. If the protocol received by the client application is subsequently selected to be the “most advantageous” protocol, subsequent communication between client application <b>300</b> and server <b>302</b> may take place via control connection <b>308</b> and data connection <b>310</b>. Subsequent control requests sent by client application <b>300</b> via control connection <b>308</b> may include, for example, stop, play, fast forward, rewind, pause, unpause, and the like. These control requests may be utilized by server <b>302</b> to control the delivery of the data stream from server <b>302</b> to client application <b>300</b> via data connection <b>310</b>.

0059It should be noted that although only one control connection and one data connection is shown in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 3</figref> to simplify illustration, multiple control and data connections utilizing the same protocol may exist during a data rendering session. Multiple control and data connections may be required to handle the multiple data streams (e.g., audio, video, annotation) that may be needed in a particular data rendering session. If desired, multiple clients applications <b>300</b> may be installed within browser <b>306</b>, e.g., to simultaneously render multiple video clips, each with its own sound and annotations.

0060<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 4</figref> illustrates another network arrangement wherein control and data connections are established through a firewall. As mentioned earlier, a firewall may have policies that restrict or prohibit the traversal of certain types of data and/or protocols. In <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 4</figref>, a firewall <b>400</b> is disposed between client application <b>300</b> and server <b>402</b>. Upon execution, client application <b>300</b> sends control request using a given protocol via firewall. <b>400</b> to server <b>402</b>. Server <b>402</b> then responds with data via data connection <b>410</b>, again via firewall <b>400</b>.

0061If the data and/or protocol can be received by the client computer through firewall <b>400</b>, client application <b>300</b> may then receive data from server <b>402</b> (through data connection <b>408</b>) in the same protocol used in the request. As before, if the request employs the TCP protocol, the server may respond with data connections for either TCP or UDP protocol (depending on the specifics of the request). Protocols that may traverse a firewall may include one or more of the following: UDP, TCP, and HTTP.

0062In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the HTTP protocol may be employed to send/receive media data (video, audio, annotation, or the like) between the client and the server. <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 5A</figref> is a prior art drawing illustrating how a client browser may communicate with a web server using a port designated for communication. In <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 5</figref>, there is shown a web server <b>550</b>, representing the software module for serving web pages to a browser application <b>552</b>. Web server <b>550</b> may be any of the commercially available web servers that are available from, for example, Netscape Communications Inc. of Mountain View, Calif. or Microsoft Corporation of Redmond, Wash. Browser application <b>552</b> represents for example the Netscape to browser from the aforementioned Netscape Communications, Inc., or similarly suitable browser applications.

0063Through browser application <b>552</b>, the user may, for example, obtain web pages pertaining to a particular entity by sending an HTTP request (e.g., GET) containing the URL (uniform resource locator) that identifies the web page file. The request sent via control connection <b>553</b> may arrive at web server <b>550</b> through the HTTP port <b>554</b>. HTTP port <b>554</b> may represent any port through which HTTP communication is enabled. HTTP port <b>554</b> may also represent the default port for communicating web pages with client browsers. The HTTP default port may represent, for example, either port <b>80</b> or port <b>8080</b> on web server <b>550</b>. As is known, one or both of these ports on web server <b>550</b> may be available for web page communication even if there are firewalls disposed between the web server <b>550</b> and client browser application <b>552</b>, which otherwise block all HTTP traffic in other ports. Using the furnished URL, web server <b>550</b> may then obtain the desired web page(s) for sending to client browser application <b>552</b> via data connection <b>556</b>.

0064The invention, in one embodiment, involves employing the HTTP protocol to communicate media commands from a browser application or browser plug-in to the server. Media commands are, for example, PLAY, STOP, REWIND, FAST FORWARD, and PAUSE. The server computer may represent, for example, a web server. The server computer may also represent a video server for streaming video to the client computer. Through the use of the HTTP protocol the client computer may successfully send media control requests and receive media data through any HTTP port. If the default HTTP port, e.g., port <b>80</b> or <b>8080</b>, is specified, the client may successfully send media control requests and receive media data even if there exists a firewall or an HTTP Proxy disposed in between the server computer and the client computer, which otherwise blocks all other traffic that does not use the HTTP protocol. For example, these firewalls or HTTP Proxies do not allow regular TCP or UDP packets to go through.

0065As is well known to those skilled, the HTTP protocol, as specified by for example the Internet Request For Comments RFC 1945 (T. Berners-Lee et al.), typically defines only three types of requests to be sent from the client computer to the server, naively GET, POST, and HEAD. The POST command, for instance, is specified in RFC 1945 to be composed of a Request-Line, one or more Headers and Entity-Body. To send media commands like PLAY, REWIND, etc., the invention in one embodiment sends the media command as part of the Entity-Body of the HTTP POST command. The media command can be in any format or protocol, and can be, for instance, in the same format as that employed when firewalls are not a concern and to plain TCP protocol can be used. This format can be, for example, RTSP (Real Time Streaming Protocol).

0066When a server gets an HTTP request, it answers the client with an HTTP Response. Responses are typically composed of a Status-Line, one or more headers, and an Entity-Body. In one embodiment of this invention, the response to the media commands is sent as the Entity-Body of the response to the original HTTP request that carried the media command.

0067<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 5B</figref> illustrates this use of HTTP for sending arbitrary media commands. In <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 5B</figref>, the plug-in application <b>560</b> within client browser application <b>562</b> may attempt to receive media data (e.g., video, audio, annotation, or the like) by first sending an HTTP request to server <b>564</b> via control connection <b>565</b>. For example, a REWIND command could be sent from the client <b>560</b> to the server <b>564</b> as an HTTP packet <b>570</b> of the form: “POST/HTTP/IA<Entity-Body containing rewind command in any suitable media protocol>”. The server can answer to this request with an HTTP response <b>572</b> of the form: “HTTP/1.0 200ok<Entity-Body containing rewind response in any suitable media protocol>”.

0068The HTTP protocol can be also used to send media data across firewalls. The client can send a GET request to the video server, and the video server can then send the video data as the Entity-Body of the HTTP response to this GET request.

0069Some firewalls may be restrictive with respect to HTTP data and may permit HTTP packets to traverse only on a certain port, e.g., port <b>80</b> and/or port <b>8080</b>. <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 5C</figref> illustrates one such situation. In this case, the control and data communications for the various data stream, e.g., audio, video, and/or annotation associated with different rendering sessions (and different clients) may be multiplexed using conventional multiplexer code and/or circuit <b>506</b> at client application <b>300</b> prior to being sent via port <b>502</b> (which may represent, for example, HTTP port <b>80</b> or HTTP port <b>8080</b>). The inventive combined use of the HTTP protocol and of the multiplexer for transmitting media control and data is referred to as the HTTP multiplex protocol, and can be used to send this data across firewalls that only allow HTTP traffic on specific ports, e.g., port <b>80</b> or <b>8080</b>.

0070At server <b>402</b>, representing, for example, server <b>104</b> of <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 1</figref>, conventional demultiplexer code and/or circuit <b>508</b> may be employed to decode the received data packets to identify which stream the control request is associated with. Likewise, data seat from server <b>402</b> to client application <b>300</b> may be multiplexed in advance at server <b>402</b> using for example conventional multiplexer code and/or circuit <b>510</b>. The multiplexed data is then sent via port <b>502</b>. At client application <b>300</b>, the multiplexed data may be decoded via conventional demultiplexer code and/or circuit <b>512</b> to identify which stream the received data packets is associated with (audio, video, or annotation).

0071Multiplexing and demultiplexing at the client and/or server may be facilitated for example by the use of the Request-URL part of the Request-Line of HTTP requests. As mentioned above, the structure of HTTP requests is described in RFC 1945. The Request-URL may, for example, identify the stream associated with the data and/or control request being transmitted. In one embodiment, the additional information in the Request-URL in the HTTP header may be as small as one or a few bits added to the HTTP request sent from client application <b>300</b> to server <b>402</b>.

0072To further facilitate discussion of the inventive HTTP multiplexing technique, reference may now be made to <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 5D</figref>. In <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 5D</figref>, the plug-in application <b>660</b> within client plug-in application <b>660</b> may attempt to receive media data (e.g., video, audio, annotation, or the like) by first sending a control request <b>670</b> to server <b>664</b> via control connection <b>665</b>. The control request is an HTTP request, which arrives at the HTTP default port <b>654</b> on server <b>664</b>. As mentioned earlier, the default HTTP port may be either port <b>80</b> or port <b>8080</b> in one embodiment.

0073In one example, the control request <b>670</b> from client plug-in <b>660</b> takes the form of a command to “POST/12469 HTTP/I.0<Entity-Body>” which indicates to the server (through the designation 12469 as the Request-URL) that this is a control connection. The Entity-Body contains, as described above, binary data that informs the video server that the client plug-in <b>660</b> wants to display a certain video or audio clip. Software codes within server <b>664</b> may be employed to assign a unique ID to this particular request from this particular client.

0074For discussion sake, assume that server <b>664</b> associates unique ID 35,122 with a video data connection between itself and client plug-in application <b>660</b>, and unique ID 35 29,999 with an audio data connection between itself and client plug-in application. The unique ID is then communicated as message <b>672</b> from server <b>664</b> to client plug-in application <b>660</b>, again through the aforementioned HTTP default port using data connection <b>667</b>. The Entity-Body of message <b>672</b> contains, among other things and as depicted in detail <b>673</b>, the audio and/or video session ID. Note that the unique ID is unique to each data connection (e.g., each of the audio, video, and annotation connections) of each client plug-in application (since there may be multiple client plug-in applications attempting to communicate through the same port).

0075Once the connection is established, the same unique ID number is employed by the client to issue HTTP control requests to server <b>664</b>. By way of example, client plug-in application <b>660</b> may issue a command “GET 135,122 HTTP/1.0” or “POST/35,122 HTTP/1.0<Entity-Body containing binary data with the REWIND media command>” to request a video file or to rewind on the video file. Although the rewind command is used in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIGS. 5A-5D</figref> to facilitate ease of discussion, other media commands, e.g., fast forward, pause, real-time play, live-play, or the like, may of course be sent in the Entity-Body. Note that the unique ID is employed in place of or in addition to the Request-URL to qualify the Request-URL.

0076Once the command is received by server <b>664</b>, the unique ID number (e.g. 35,122) may be employed by the server to demultiplex the command to associate the command with a particular client and data file. This unique ID number can also attach to the HTTP header of HTTP responses sent from server <b>664</b> to client plug-in application <b>660</b>, through the same HTTP default port <b>654</b> on server <b>664</b>, to permit client plug-in application <b>660</b> to ascertain whether an HTTP data packet is associated with a given data stream.

0077Advantageously, the invention permits media control commands and media data to be communicated between the client computer and the server computer via the default HTTP port, e.g., port <b>80</b> or <b>8050</b> in one embodiment, even if HTTP packets are otherwise blocked by a firewall disposed between the client computer and the server computer. The association of each control connection and data connection to each client with a unique ID advantageously permits multiple control and data connections (from one or more clients) to be established through the same default HTTP port on the server, advantageously bypassing the firewall. Since both the server and the client have the demultiplexer code and/or circuit that resolve a particular unique ID into a particular data stream, multiplexed data communication is advantageously facilitated thereby.

0078In some networks, it may not be possible to traverse the firewall due to stringent <b>35</b> firewall policies. As mentioned earlier, it may be possible in these situations to allow the client application to communicate with a server using a proxy. <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 6</figref> illustrates this situation wherein client application <b>300</b> employs proxy <b>602</b> to communicate with server <b>402</b>. The use of proxy <b>602</b> may be necessary since client application <b>300</b> may employ a protocol which is strictly prohibited by firewall <b>604</b>. The identity of proxy <b>602</b> may be found in browser program <b>306</b>, e.g., Netscape as it employs the proxy to download its web pages, or may be configured by the user himself. Typical protocols that may employ a proxy for communication, e.g., proxy <b>602</b>, includes HTTP and UDP.

0079In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, the multiple protocols that may be employed for communication between a server computer and a client computer are tried in parallel during autodetect. In other words, the connections depicted in <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIGS. 3</figref>, <b>4</b>, <b>5</b>C, and <b>6</b> may be attempted simultaneously and in parallel over different control connections by the client computer. Via these control connections, the server is requested to respond with various protocols.

0080If the predefined “best” protocol (predetermined in accordance with some predefined protocol priority) is received by the client application from the server, autodetect may, in one embodiment, end immediately and the “best” protocol is selected for immediate communication. In one real-time data rendering application, UDP is considered the “best” protocol, and the receipt of UDP data by the client may trigger the termination of the autodetect.

0081If the “best” protocol has not been received after a predefined time period, the most advantageous protocol (in terms of for example data transfer rate and/or transmission control) is selected among the set of protocols received by the client. The selected protocol may then be employed for communication between the client and the server.

0082<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 7</figref> depicts, in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, a simplified flowchart illustrating the steps of the inventive autodetect technique. In <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 7</figref>, the client application starts (in step <b>702</b>) by looking up the HTTP proxy, if there is any, from the browser. As stated earlier, the client computer may have received a web page from the browser, which implies that the HTTP protocol may have been employed by the browser program for communication. If a HTTP proxy is required, the name and location of the HTTP proxy is likely known to the browser, and this knowledge may be subsequently employed by the client to at least enable communication with the server using the HTTP proxy protocol, i.e., if a more advantageous protocol cannot be ascertained after autodetect.

0083In step <b>704</b>, the client begins the autodetect sequence by starting in parallel the 35 control thread <b>794</b>, along with five protocol threads <b>790</b>, <b>792</b>, <b>796</b>, <b>798</b>, and <b>788</b>. As the term is used herein, parallel refers to both the situation wherein the multiple protocol threads are sent parallelly starting at substantially the same tune (having substantially similar starting time), and the situation wherein the multiple protocol threads simultaneously execute (executing at the same time), irrespective when each protocol thread is initiated. In the latter case, the multiple threads may have, for example, staggered start time and the initiation of one thread may not depend on the termination of another thread.

0084Control tread <b>794</b> represents the thread for selecting the most advantageous protocol for communication. The other protocol threads <b>790</b>, <b>792</b>, <b>796</b>, <b>798</b>, and <b>788</b> represent threads for initiating in parallel communication using the various protocols, e.g., UDP, TCP, HTTP proxy, HTTP through port <b>80</b> (HTTP <b>80</b>), and HTTP through port <b>8080</b> (HTTP <b>8080</b>). Although only five protocol threads are shown, any number of protocol threads may be initiated by the client, using any conventional and/or suitable protocols. The steps associated with each of threads <b>794</b>, <b>790</b>, <b>792</b>, <b>796</b>, <b>798</b>, and <b>788</b> are discussed herein in connection with <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIGS. 8A-8E</figref> and <b>9</b>.

0085In <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 8A</figref>, the UDP protocol thread is executed. The client inquires in step <b>716</b> whether there requires a UDP proxy. If the UDP proxy is required, the user may obtain the naive of the UDP proxy from, for example, the system administrator in order to use the UDP proxy to facilitate communication to the proxy (in step <b>718</b>). If no UDP proxy is required, the client may directly connect to the server (in step <b>720</b>). Thereafter, the client may begin sending a data request (i.e., a control request) to the server in step <b>722</b> using the UDP protocol (either through the proxy if a proxy is involved or directly to the server if no proxy is required).

0086In <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 8B</figref>, the TCP protocol thread is executed. If TCP protocol is employed, the client typically directly connects to the server (in step <b>726</b>). Thereafter, the client may begin sending a data request (i.e., a control request) to the server using the TCP protocol (step <b>724</b>).

0087In <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 8C</figref>, the HTTP protocol thread is executed. The client inquires in step <b>716</b> whether there requires a HTTP proxy. If the HTTP proxy is required, the user may obtain the name of the HTTP proxy from, for example, the browser since, as discussed earlier, the data pertaining to the proxy may be kept by the browser. Alternatively, the user may obtain data pertaining to the HTTP proxy from the system administrator in order to use the HTTP proxy to facilitate communication to the server (in step <b>732</b>).

0088If no HTTP proxy is required, the client may directly connect to the server (in step <b>730</b>). Thereafter, the client may begin sending a data request (i.e., a control request) to the server in step <b>734</b> using the HTTP protocol (either through the proxy if a proxy is involved or directly to the server if no proxy is required).

0089In <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 8D</figref>, the HTTP <b>80</b> protocol thread is executed. If HTTP <b>80</b> protocol is employed, HTTP data may be exchanged but only through port <b>80</b>, which may be for example the port on the client computer through which communication with the network is permitted. Through port <b>80</b>, the client typically directly connects to the server (in step <b>736</b>). Thereafter, the client may begin sending a data request (i.e., a control request) to the server (step <b>738</b>) using the HTTP <b>80</b> protocol.

0090In <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 8E</figref>, the HTTP <b>8080</b> protocol thread is executed. If HTTP <b>8080</b> protocol is employed, HTTP data may be exchanged but only through port <b>8080</b>, which may be the port on the client computer for communicating with the network. Through port <b>8080</b>, the client typically directly connects to the server (in step <b>740</b>). Thereafter, the client may begin sending a data request (i.e., a control request) to the server (step <b>742</b>) using the HTTP <b>8080</b> protocol. The multiplexing and demultiplexing techniques that may be employed for communication through port <b>8080</b>, as well as port <b>80</b> of <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 5D</figref>, have been discussed earlier and are not repeated here for brevity sake.

0091<figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 9</figref> illustrates, in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, control thread <b>794</b> of <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 7</figref>. It should be emphasized that <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 7</figref> is but one way of implementing the control thread; other techniques of implementing the control thread to facilitate autodetect should be apparent to those skilled in the art in view of this disclosure. In step <b>746</b>, the thread determines whether the predefined timeout period has expired. The predefined timeout period may be any predefined duration (such as 7 seconds for example) from the time the data request is sent out to the server (e.g., step <b>722</b> of <figref idref="DRAWINGS">FIG. 8A</figref>). In one embodiment, each protocol thread has its own timeout period whose expiration occurs at the expiration of a predefined duration after the data request using that protocol has been sent out. When all the timeout periods associated with all the protocols have been accounted for, the timeout period for the autodetect technique is deemed expired.

0092If the timeout has occurred, the thread moves to step <b>754</b> wherein the most advantageous protocol among the set of protocols received back from the server is selected for communication. As mentioned, the selection of the most advantageous protocol may be performed in accordance with some predefined priority scheme, and data regarding the selected protocol may be saved for future communication sessions between this server and this client.

0093If no timeout has occurred, the thread proceeds to step <b>748</b> to wait for either data from the server or the expiration of the timeout period. If timeout occurs, the thread moves to step <b>754</b>, which has been discussed earlier. If data is received from the server, the thread moves to step <b>750</b> to ascertain whether the protocol associated with the data received from the server is the predefined “best” protocol, e.g., in accordance with the predefined priority.

0094If the predefined “best” protocol (e.g., UDP in some real-time data rendering applications) is received, the thread preferably moves to step <b>754</b> to terminate the autodetect and to immediately begin using this protocol for data communication instead of waiting of the timeout expiration. Advantageously, the duration of the autodetect sequence may be substantially shorter than the predefined timeout period. In this manner, rapid autodetect of the most suitable protocol and rapid establishment of communication are advantageously facilitated.

0095If the predefined “best” protocol is not received in step <b>750</b>, the thread proceeds to step <b>752</b> to add the received protocol to the received set. This received protocol set represents the set of protocols from which the “most advantageous” (relatively speaking) protocol is selected. The most advantageous protocol is ascertained relative to other protocols in the received protocol set irrespective whether it is the predefined “best” protocol in accordance with the predefined priority. As an example of a predefined protocol priority, UDP may be deemed to be best (i.e., the predefined best), followed by TCP, HTTP, then HTTP <b>80</b> and HTTP <b>8080</b> (the last two may be equal in priority). As mentioned earlier, the most advantageous protocol is selected from the received protocol set preferably upon the expiration of the predefined timeout period.

0096From step <b>752</b>, the thread returns to step <b>746</b> to test whether the timeout period <b>25</b> has expired. If not, the thread continues along the steps discussed earlier.

0097Note that since the invention attempts to establish communication between the client application and the server computer in parallel, the time lag between the time the autodetect mechanism begins to execute and the time when the most advantageous protocol is determined is minimal. If communication attempts have been tried in serial, for example, the user would suffer the delay associated with each protocol thread in series, thereby disadvantageously lengthening the time period between communication attempt and successful establishment of communication.

0098The saving in time is even more dramatic in the event the network is congested or damaged. In some networks, it may take anywhere from 30 to 90 seconds before the client application realizes that an attempt to connect to the server (e.g., step <b>720</b>, <b>726</b>, <b>730</b>, <b>736</b>, or <b>740</b>) has failed. If each protocol is tried in series, as is done in one embodiment, the delay may, in some cases, reach minutes before the user realizes that the network is unusable and attempts should be made at a later time.

0099By attempting to establish communication via the multiple protocols in parallel, network-related delays are suffered in parallel. Accordingly, the user does not have to wait for multiple attempts and failures before being able to ascertain that the network is unusable and an attempt to establish communication should be made at a later time. In one embodiment, once the user realizes that all parallel attempts to connect with the network and/or the proxies have failed, there is no need to make the user wait until the expiration of the timeout periods of each thread. In accordance with this embodiment, the user is advised to try again as soon as it is realized that parallel attempts to connect with the server have all failed. In this manner, less of the user's time is needed to establish optimal communication with a network.

0100While this invention has been described in terms of several preferred embodiments, there are alterations, permutations, and equivalents which fall within the scope of this invention. For example, although the invention has been described with reference with sending out protocol threads in parallel, the automatic protocol detection technique also applies when the protocol threads are sent serially. In this case, while it may take longer to select the most advantageous protocol for selection, the automatic protocol detection technique accomplishes the task without requiring any sophisticated technical knowledge on the part of the user of the client computer. The duration of the autodetect technique, even when serial autodetect is employed, may be shortened by trying the protocols in order of their desirability and ignoring less desirable protocols once a more desirable protocol is obtained. It should also be noted that there are many alternative ways of implementing the methods and apparatuses of the present invention. It is therefore intended that the following appended claims be interpreted as including all such alterations, permutations, and equivalents as fall within the true spirit and scope of the present invention.